Cars And Motorcycles
Royal Enfield Bullet Classic: A Comparison between 500CC and 350 CC
Guys here I am giving comparison between 500CC and 350CC Royal Enfield Bullet Classic. In production since 1932, Bullet enjoys the reputation of longest running model in the unremitting production. Recently, after 75 years, its new avatar has been launched in the market with new styling and younger look that does not compromise on what is expected from a Royal Enfield.
What sets it apart from just about every other motor bike in the market is its authentic vintage styling and styling in single colour. So here we have a bike reminiscent of the native imaginary of British motorcycles, post World War II.
Like this:
Nirvan Jain
Hello Vikas,
I would also like your advice on these Royal Enfield bikes. I have only recently fallen in love with the idea of owning a motorbike. My plan is to use a bike not just for short trips (such as Delhi to Jaipur or Pondicherry to Bangalore and also for commutes within the city), but to also make very long road trips (i.e. from Pondicherry to Ladakh).
Personally, I love the look of the 500cc model, but I don’t know whether these two models you have compared would be good for very long road trips – most likely just short trips and within the city. Am I correct in my assumption?
Concerning only Royal Enfield bikes (the others besides the ones you have compared here), which would you recommend for use within the city/short commutes, long road trips or perhaps one bike that can manage both requirements? Are Royal Enfield bikes like the 500c or the 350cc reliable on long journeys or do they have problems/break down often? Which one tends to break down more easily?
I know reliability is a big factor for long trips, but I don’t want just a boring, highly efficient bike…I would like some character.
Are there any other brands/models of bikes that you would recommend besides Royal Enfield for these multi purposes? I’ve also been looking at Harley Davidson models for my long cruising purposes and I’ve heard that the various Japanese bikes are also very good choices. Right now, I’m not concerned with price – I just want to know about the motorbikes themselves.
Thanks so much for your time,
Nirvan
Dear Nirvan
Thanks for your mail.
If you are looking for a bike which can serve you on both long and short trips then I will never recomend a Royal Enfield. I believe its not as reliable as a Japanese bikes.
Royal Enfield cant be compared to any other bike and they are in a different league. But its my personal view that its is not a reliable motorcycle for long distance travel like Pondicherry to Ladakh.
If you are looking at Harleys and money is not the crieteria for you then I suggest you go for Kawasaki Ninja 650r which is a excellent and brilliant tourer as well as city sport bike. It prices around 4.57 lacs ex showroom and has a very refined engine and gives great value for money. Or a Harley 883 superlow which can also be customised in a cruiser and can serve you as a sporstster in the city.
Or if you want something below 2 lac price range or lets say with price tag close to a royal enfield 500cc then you better get a Honda CBR 250r. This Honda is a great value for money as well and is very good in city as well as if you like to tour across the country as its top model comes with an ABS which can come handy while riding in the tough terrian of Ladakh.
But if money is not the crieteria then nothing can beat Kawasaki Ninja 650r but you have to wait now as the booking for ninja is closed by Kawasaki for time being.
Make sure that you take a good long test drive of all these bikes before you buy any.
- Boss Bullet – Royal Enfield News
- VISUAL GRATIFICATION: 03.10
- Classic Bike News – June 2011.
- Ian Bell
- Royal Enfield Bullet 500 – Hazan Motorworks Pipeburn.com
